# Iuput (High Priest of Amun)

Iuput was a son of Pharaoh Sheshonq I and served as High Priest (First Prophet) of Amun-Re at Thebes during Dynasty 22 of the Third Intermediate Period, circa 944–924 BC, in the second half of the tenth century BC.<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[6](https://www.horuspedia.com/pharaoh/iuput/)</sup> Alongside the high priesthood he held the titles [Commander-in-chief](https://www.edgepedia.org/commander-in-chief) of the Army and [Governor of Upper Egypt](https://www.edgepedia.org/governor-of-upper-egypt), a combination that placed both the senior priesthood and the secular government of the south in the king's own family.<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sheshonq1.htm)</sup>

| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Position | First Prophet (High Priest) of Amun-Re at Thebes<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> |
| Father | Sheshonq I, first king of Dynasty 22<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> |
| Other offices | Commander-in-chief of the Army; Governor of Upper Egypt<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> |
| Tenure | 944–924 BC by one chronological dataset<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> |
| Dynasty context | Dynasty 22, conventionally begun 945 BC by a Libyan-descended family<sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup> |
| Monument | Cenotaph (dummy tomb) at Abydos<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> |
| Namesakes | Iuput B, a later Prophet of Amun; Iuput II, a late-eighth-century Delta ruler<sup>[4](https://doi.org/10.1177/030751330909500103)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup> |

## Family and appointment

Sheshonq I came from a family of Libyan (Meshwesh) descent ruling in the eastern Delta and became the first king of Dynasty 22, conventionally in 945 BC.<sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sheshonq1.htm)</sup> Under Dynasty 21, Egypt had two centers of power: pharaohs ruling from [Tanis](https://www.edgepedia.org/tanis) and High Priests of Amun ruling from Thebes, with generally good relations between them.<sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup> Sheshonq maintained centralized power by placing his sons and other family members in key positions across Egypt: Iuput in the Amun priesthood at Thebes, Nimlot as military commander at [Herakleopolis](https://www.edgepedia.org/herakleopolis), and Djedptahaufankh as Third Prophet of Amun.<sup>[2](https://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sheshonq1.htm)</sup> Giving his son the offices of Governor of Upper Egypt, High Priest of Amun, and commander-in-chief of the armies united secular and religious elements of the state in one person.<sup>[2](https://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sheshonq1.htm)</sup>

## Titles and offices

Iuput's recorded titles, in hieroglyphic transliteration *Hm-nTr tpi n imn-ra* (First Prophet of Amun-Re), *imi-rA-mSa wr n rsit* (Commander-in-chief of the Army) and *HAwti* (Governor), were listed together on his monuments.<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> The combination had precedents in Dynasty 21, when Egypt was split in two, each half ruled individually, and [Upper Egypt](https://www.edgepedia.org/upper-egypt) was governed by a military commander who was simultaneously High Priest of Amun of Thebes. The difference lay in the source of authority: the earlier priest-commanders governed a divided country in which each center of power ruled individually, while Iuput held the same offices as an appointee of a king whose dynasty now ruled both Tanis and Thebes.<sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sheshonq1.htm)</sup>

## Dating and chronology

One specialist chronological dataset gives Iuput's tenure as 944–924 BC.<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> The Metropolitan Museum sets the start of Dynasty 22 conventionally from 945 BC.<sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup> Kenneth A. Kitchen, in *The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100–650 B.C.)*, notes a Year 5 source that is attributable to [Psusennes I](https://www.edgepedia.org/psusennes-i) only by citing him through his Theban title of [High Priest of Amun](https://www.edgepedia.org/high-priest-of-amun), and a regnal year attributable to a Theban high priest only because he was already a real king as well.<sup>[5](https://archive.org/stream/kenneth-anderson-kitchen-the-third-intermediate-period-in-egypt-1100-650-b.-c.-4-ed.-2009/Kenneth%20Anderson%20Kitchen%20-%20The%20Third%20Intermediate%20Period%20in%20Egypt%20%281100-650%20B.C.%29%2C%204%20ed.%20-2009_djvu.txt)</sup>

## Monuments and the question of identity

Iuput built for himself a cenotaph, a dummy tomb, at Abydos.<sup>[1](http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm)</sup> At least three men named Iuput must be kept distinct in the record of this era. Besides the High Priest discussed here, a later Prophet of Amun named Iuput (designated Iuput B), a descendant of [Osorkon I](https://www.edgepedia.org/osorkon-i) through the High Priest of Amun Shoshenq, is known from fragments of his cartonnage mummy-case published by Aidan Dodson in the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology in 2009.<sup>[4](https://doi.org/10.1177/030751330909500103)</sup> And by the end of the eighth century BC a namesake, [Iuput II](https://www.edgepedia.org/iuput-ii), held local power in the eastern Delta alongside [Osorkon IV](https://www.edgepedia.org/osorkon-iv), while Tefnakht ruled from Sais.<sup>[3](https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm)</sup>

## References

1. High Priests of Amun (narmer.pl). http://www.narmer.pl/dyn/aaen.htm
2. Jimmy Dunn, "Sheshonq I, Founder of Egypt's 22nd Dynasty" (Tour Egypt). https://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sheshonq1.htm
3. "Egypt in the Third Intermediate Period (ca. 1070–664 B.C.)", The Metropolitan Museum of Art. https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tipd/hd/_tipd.htm
4. Aidan Dodson, "The Prophet of Amun Iuput and His Distinguished Ancestors", Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 95 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1177/030751330909500103
5. Kenneth A. Kitchen, *The Third Intermediate Period in Egypt (1100–650 B.C.)*, 4th ed., 2009. https://archive.org/stream/kenneth-anderson-kitchen-the-third-intermediate-period-in-egypt-1100-650-b.-c.-4-ed.-2009/Kenneth%20Anderson%20Kitchen%20-%20The%20Third%20Intermediate%20Period%20in%20Egypt%20%281100-650%20B.C.%29%2C%204%20ed.%20-2009_djvu.txt
6. Iuput, High Priests of Amun (944–924 BC), Horuspedia, https://www.horuspedia.com/pharaoh/iuput/

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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › History and archaeology › Periods and civilizations › Ancient Near East, Egypt, Nubia, and the Punic world › Ancient Egypt › Third Intermediate Period › Third Intermediate Period: officials, priests, and private persons*

*Initially written Sep 19, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026 · Last review: Sep 19, 2026*

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